Habitat x Twin Peaks

Some shows are so brilliant, so influential, and have such an effect on you that watching it can be described as opening a door into a different time or universe. David Lynch’s Twin Peaks is one of these shows. The television landscape in 1990, when Twin Peaks dropped, was much different. Fresh Prince, Cheers, and other lighthearted domestic shows like Alf were the norm. Twin Peaks’ dark depiction of how a murder affects a small town was groundbreaking, and is now a cult classic that’s considered to be one of the most influential shows of all time. Showtime is reopening the door to the Twin Peaks universe for a third season 25 years later (Season 3 airs May 21, 2017). News of a third season gave Habitat Founder, Joe Castrucci, the idea to show his appreciation for the show with a Twin Peaks x Habitat Collaboration . We hit up Joe to talk about the collab and how he convinced David Lynch and Showtime/CBS to Collaborate with Habitat Skateboards.

What’s your name and what do you do?
Joe Castrucci. I am the founder and creative guy behind Habitat.

Habitat graphics have a distinctive look. Is that something you think about when you start
designing new graphics and a series? I try to make things look different but they always end up having a similar vibe... hahah. It’s just the look my brain settles on when designing. I have learned a lot from AWS and Mike Hill so there is a bit of that aesthetic in my work. AWS was my first real job so it imprinted on me heavily.

Does having a defined style/look help or limit your process?
It does both. For people who like my style it’s great but when times change and trends evolve I have to alter things a bit to stay current. It’s always a challenge to not look stale but it’s fun to challenge myself in exploring new techniques.

How did this collaboration between Twin Peaks and Habitat come about?
I am a fan of TV and Movies. I love when a creative mind or group of creative people can create a whole world for an audience to escape to. David Lynch and Mark Frost took that to a new level with Twin Peaks. I actually had a good friend who was a massive fan, but I put off watching the series for years. I finally watched it all the way through in the mid 2000’s and was completely blown away. It was nothing like I had remembered it as a kid. It was perfect and the characters and visuals were so dynamic and intoxicating. I was thinking of a new collaboration in early 2016 and it hit me that Twin Peaks would be perfect. The show took place in the Northwest and revolved heavily around a lumber mill. Skateboards are made of wood and we have a long history of riders from the Northwest. It seemed like a perfect fit so I did some research and contacted CBS. After a few calls and emails I finally got through to the right people and to my surprise… they were down to proceed as long as David Lynch approved the art. After a few months of work I sent some concept art and some sample decks. He liked what he saw and after some minor changes, we went into full sampling then into production on the collection. I want to add, I’m speaking about this series and this process from my personal experience and opinions. I have never even spoken to David. I deal with Showtime and CBS, and they handle communication with him and that’s just fine by me. He has seen and approved all you see in the collection and that’s enough for me!

Twin Peaks has a cult following. What was your process for working on this collab?
I watched the show religiously while working on the designs and shot photos of the screen with a 35mm camera on interesting clips. There are a ton of subtle details pulled from the show from the color palette to the exposed wood throughout. I also listened to the soundtrack on rotation.

What changes in your approach when working on a collaboration?
I try to make collaboration projects look like they were created in the era of the original art. For Pink Floyd it was important to use the right fonts and basic bold colors. For Twin Peaks it’s just important to not stray from their art direction. I want the collaborations to look really authentic with just a hint of Habitat vibe. The Log Lady and Cooper decks are the closest to a traditional Habitat graphic. That was super fulfilling. It made me feel like I was officially contributing to the heritage of the show.

There’s a lot of material in Twin Peaks to work with. How did you decide what imagery to use?
There actually wasn’t any material except a DVD box set CBS sent me… Ha. I just took screen grabs from my DVD’s and expanded it from there using my own illustration work and the screen shot images.

What scenes resonated with you, but simply didn’t translate to board graphics or skateboarding?
I love Dr Jacoby but couldn’t make a graphic that I was psyched on enough to send the Twin Peaks folks for approval.

Working on this series, did you discover any parallels between Twin Peaks and skateboarding?
Well… I started skating the year Twin Peaks came out. I was 12 years old and I remember this era so clearly. It feels like Jr High to me, so skating and the show had strong parallels personally. Other than that, the Habitat crew are heavy coffee drinkers so that was always in my mind.. ha.

Before working on this, what was your take on Twin Peaks?
I thought it was a perfect. The first season especially is the best TV experience ever in my opinion. The Characters and dialogue have remained relevant for 25 years.

How would you describe the original Twin Peaks series to someone who's never seen or heard of it?
It depends who I was talking to. I would say it’s like nothing they have seen, but everything they are watching now was influenced by Twin Peaks. It’s just a funny, mysterious, timeless, charming, terrifying show that came out way before Television was ready for it. If you haven’t seen it, watch it.

How was David Lynch involved with the designs?
I would send Showtime or CBS my concepts and in a week or two there would be a list of notes from David Lynch. They were short and really easy to understand.

Did David Lynch have any ideas or visuals he wanted to be used?
I would guess he just wanted to be in line with the show without straying too much from the art direction of the original series.

Do you have a favorite character from the show?
I love Jacoby and the Horne brothers, but my favorite would have to be Cooper.

There are many hidden meanings and clues throughout Twin Peaks, any hidden details in the graphics?
The whole show is filled with hidden meanings in my opinion. It’s such a smart show. I think all of the graphics and visuals in our collection depict the mystery.

Anything else you want to add? Have any fond/funny CCS memories or stories?
I am just incredibly lucky and humbled to have been able to partake in the buildup for the 3rd Season. I know it’s just a small product line, but I like to think it’s helping to inform the young skate community about Twin Peaks. Also, I want to add, if you don’t already know, the show is on Netflix and back with an all new season from Showtime this May. Maybe you can plug anyone reading this with the official information from Showtime.